Sony Betamax1975-2002In 1975, Sony launched an innovative home video tape recorder called Betamax. When JVC released the competing VHS format a year later, it started a decade long videotape-format war. Betamax was higher quality than VHS, but it was also more expensive. The VHS could record a full movie, whereas the Betamax was initially limited to only one hour. While Sony refused to license the format to other firms, JVC built an ecosystem of partners and offered a greater selection of films. By the middle of the 1980s, VHS had won the war. This classic story of tech innovation failure demonstrates that technical excellence and being first to market is not enough. Sony learned from their failure. They successfully introduced the digital Compact Disc (CD) by strategically partnering with the music industry. The company bought a record company and is now a giant in both entertainment and electronics. Image by Museum of Failure
Rejuvenique1999-1999This beauty mask tones facial muscles with electricity. According to the instructions, the mask should be strapped onto the face for 15 minutes, three to four times a week. Linda Evans, the woman on the package, is an American television star known from the Dynasty series. In Rejuvenique’s instructional film, she congratulates the owner for their exciting purchase and ensures them that it is a good investment. However, according to one user review, the mask “feels like a thousand ants are biting my face.” The mask seemed straight from a horror movie. Also, the device was never safety approved! Image by Museum of Failure
Segway 2001 This is a first-generation Segway, and it was a marvel of technology. Since Segways are still being sold, you may wonder what the Segway is doing here at the Museum of Failure. A failure is defined as a deviation from expected and desired results. The expectations for the Segway were huge: ‘Segway will be to the car, what the car was to horse and cart.’, ’Segway will be the fastest product in history to reach $1 billion in sales.’, ‘City infrastructures will be planned around the Segway.’, ‘The Segway will be more important than the Internet.’ As a means of transport, the Segway was a complete flop. It became a commercial failure, since it was far too expensive, heavy and also silly. Today, it is most used as a fun group activity or by security guards in shopping centers. Image by Museum of Failure
Ford Edsel1957-1960Ford hoped that the Edsel would be the car that everybody wanted. The car had several technological innovations, like an electro-mechanical Teletouch transmission - with the buttons in the middle of the steering wheel. With an extensive and expensive marketing campaign, expectations were enormous. The advertising campaign teased consumers with silhouette glimpses of the Edsel. Confident of the imminent success, Ford convinced dealerships to order the Edsel before it was fully developed. Those dreams were crushed when nobody bought the car, and it was mocked in the newspapers. The design was considered ugly, and the car was priced far too too high. Ford lost $350 million on the Edsel, equivalent to almost $3 billion in 2017 dollars. It is no wonder that an Edsel became a symbol for commercial failure. Image by Museum of Failure
Nokia N-Gage2003-2005Back in the year 2000, many people carried both mobile phones and handheld game consoles. Nokia combined these two devices into one unit and launched the N-Gage in 2004. The N-Gage was not a failure of ideas - it was a failure of implementation. The device had to be disassembled to change games. And to use it as a phone, the user had to hold the phone sideways, with its thin edge against their head. This led to its mocking nickname of the ‘taco phone’. Along with design flaws, it lacked good games. However, it has been argued that the intensive development of the N-Gage spawned Finland’s thriving mobile gaming industry. Perhaps the failed N-Gage ultimately led to today’s insanely popular game Angry Birds. Image by Museum of Failure
Kodak DC-401888-2012Kodak was a successful early pioneer in the development of digital cameras. The DC40 released in 1995 was among the first consumer digital cameras sold. When Kodak created the digital camera in 1975, management’s response was ‘That’s cute – but don’t tell anyone about it’. It was dropped for fear it would threaten Kodak’s profitable film printing business. Kodak even developed an online image sharing service, but used it to try to sell more printed photos. Their failure was an inability to truly embrace the new business models the disruptive change opens up. Kodak went bankrupt in 2012. Image by Museum of Failure
BIC For Her2011The French company BIC is best known for their ballpoint pens, which have been produced since the 1950s. Bic for Her are pens designed to ‘fit comfortably in a woman’s hand’ with pastel colors and glitter, ofcourse. The launch was an instant flop. Consumers ridiculed the product in terrible reviews. On her talk show, the comedian Ellen DeGeneres made fun of the pens ‘Over the last 20 years, companies have spent millions of dollars making pills that grow men’s hair and fix men’s sex lives, and now ladies have a pen’! Image by Museum of Failure
Coca-Cola BlÄK 2006-2008Coca-Cola spent two years developing this soda-coffee concoction, in the hopes of tapping into the growing premium coffee market. The beverage was launched in 2006 and was aimed at adult consumers, more specifically ‘the over-30, savvy, sophisticated achiever.’ Coca-Cola never explained why the drink flopped other than that it might have been the taste. It was described as ‘an adult Cola taste,’ which was perhaps not for everyone. The story of BlÄK shows us that even for gigantic corporations with enormous resources and deep consumer insights, failure is always an option. Image by Museum of Failure
Synthetic Trachea2011-2013The surgeon Paolo Macchiarini pioneered a new regenerative surgery using a synthetic trachea (windpipe) combined with the patient’s own stem cells. The revolutionary transplants were described as very successful. Macchiarini became a superstar surgeon, and the prestigious Karolinska Institute in Sweden got massive global attention. But everything ended in a huge tragedy. The plastic trachea did not work. They caused enormous suffering and the patients died. Karolinska grossly neglected the necessary research on humans, ethical issues and patient safety. Any concerns raised about this new, exciting technology were ignored. Since Macchiarini had received large research grants from the EU, more patients were put on the operating table. The scandal has cost many people their lives and seriously damaged confidence in Swedish clinical research. Image by Museum of Failure
Colgate frozen dinnerAccording to the literature on brand failures, Colgate launched a line of frozen food in the 1980s. This was a mistake because the brand was strongly associated with oral hygiene and strong mint flavors, rather than food. (In the image above, the Museum has reconstructed the packaging with a good measure of artistic freedom). When it came to the attention of Colgate, a legal representative from the company called and sternly informed the Museum that nobody at the company recognized the lasagna. Either Colgate has a bad memory, or the Museum of Failure got pranked by a branding consultant who started an urban legend years ago. Image by Museum of Failure
